Sean Murphy, Ph.D.

Sean Murphy is a senior staff psychologist at CPS. He has a BA in film and psychology from New York University, a Master’s in School Administration from NC State University, and a Master’s and Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from the University of Tennessee. Before entering the counseling field, Murphy spent over a decade in public education and has a passion for working with undergraduate students who are at significant transition points in their lives.

Murphy sees change in counseling happening through a strong therapeutic relationship built on mutual trust and collaboration. By bringing insight and understanding about a client’s issues, while tailoring needs with specific interventions and strategies, Murphy works with clients to meet goals for a wide range of concerns. Murphy recognizes that all clients have many different identities that intersect in various ways and emphasizes that every client is the expert on their lived experience. Some of Murphy’s many areas of interest include working with depression, anxiety, career, trauma, and adjustment, as well as working with students from rural Appalachia, students of color, and students who identify as LGBTQIA+. Outside of the center, Murphy loves hiking, art of all kinds (including TV!), eating tasty food, and enjoying/surviving being a parent.